Travels In a Strange State

Rating:
Summary: You Go Girl!
Review: Josie Dew continues to be a fun read. Her delight in Bryce Canyon was a joy to read. She is a gutsy, young woman with a sense of humor. I hope she keeps cycling and keeps writing. I also recommend Wind In My Wheels.

Rating:
Summary: Single white female crosses USA on two wheels? Huh?
Review: Lone women adventurers are a rare breed. And when you add two skinny wheels and a small tent you become the subject of both admiration and suspicion wherever you dare to peddle - are you alone? Aren't you scared? Isn`t it dangerous? Are you married? Why not? Do you have kids? Why not? Are you looking for a boyfriend? Why not? As a lone female cycle-tourer of three years running I was excited and reassured to read of Josie's enthralling zig-zag across the States, a land of big empty spaces, thundering 24-wheeled lorries and crazies hiding behind bushes with sawn-off shotguns, according to every third cyclist you talk to. ''Little lady, if you're not going to (insert foul request here), you'd better get the hell outta my way", a travelling friend once recounted. So I was comforted to read of the incredible warmth and hospitality of the American people she peddled into in between the long, lonely and dusty stretches. The book is written in an upbeat, positive style, as you would expect from a fearless 20-something lass. It is perfect to inspire the younger female cyclist or she who craves to progress from the safety but relative restrictiveness of bicycle-club touring. For older (35+) cycle tourists, of which there are a majority since it is a recreation that begs for more money and time, the recounting might seem a little lightweight, for it is not tainted by the weariness and 'why the hell am I doing this, if I see another stone circle I will scream' that creeps in as you cover more and more bitumen and gravel track. The book simply says, cut loose girl, there's a whole lotta highway and byway out there to explore, and you can do it. I have cycle-camped alone in supposedly edgy places like Nicaragua and Cuba but the States still remains a scary prospect. I'll just have to read this book again before I go!

Rating:
Summary: plenty of fizz but wheres the soda
Review: the intrepid Josie Dew is back on her bike again.this time its coast to coast via a straight line right through the heart of the good old u.s.ofa.I cant wait until she comes to Australia so she can tell the world how sunny the continent is,how friendly the people are and how much like the rest of Europe we turned out to be.